A look at Pokédex 3D Pro

3DS owners might remember the release of Pokédex 3D, a free app that was available three months after the launch of Pokémon Black and Pokémon White. Included in the app was all 153 Pokémon from the Black and White series, but with a catch – everyone who downloaded the app was given 16 randomly-picked Pokémon. From then on, they had to download three random Pokémon from SpotPass on a daily basis or trade them with other 3DS owners to be able to complete the set. One of the coolest features of Pokédex 3D was the fact that all the Pokémon included were fully-rendered 3D models, showing off what the 3DS could do to bring those 2D sprites to life. Fans wanted to see more, so Nintendo has followed up with Pokédex 3D Pro, a paid-for app containing all the Pokémon the series has spawned over the years.

I have decided that a review would not be the best way to go about evaluating this app, so this feature will be somewhat similar to a review, but without the need for a score on the end. Reviewing something like Pokédex 3D Pro is very difficult – it’s not a game, it’s a Pokémon accessory for your 3DS, so I am going to treat it like that.

One of the biggest differences between the original Pokédex 3D and the Pro version is that there is no need to download or trade all the Pokémon, as they all unlocked from the start. The Pokédex is laid out just like the free version, with information of the selected Pokémon on the bottom screen of the 3DS, such as its HP, weight, attack rating, weaknesses, strengths, and a moves list, while the beautifully rendered 3D model animates on the top screen. You can also listen to the Pokémon’s calling cry and show their attack animations. Additionally, you can also look at every single move that has been in the games. Want to see what revenge does? Take a look in the Move Dex and find out that it doubles the power of the Pokémon’s attack after it takes damage. When it comes to information about a Pokémon, Pokédex 3D Pro is in-depth enough that fans will get a kick out of it.

A new feature for the app is the inclusion of the Pokémon Challenge. This quiz contains 35+ topics to pick from, which cover subjects like naming a Pokémon from its Pokédex description, naming a Pokémon correctly from its 3D model or answering which Pokémon a summoning cry comes from. It stocks stats to tell you how successful you have been in the quizzes and how long you took to answer them. This will test the knowledge of any Pokémon fan and is an entertaining inclusion for Pokédex 3D Pro that is rather fun.

Lastly, you can use the inbuilt augmented reality feature to uses AR codes to bring the 3D Pokémon models to life with your 3DS camera. You can look for AR codes on the Internet, or try making them out on paper and placing them on a surface. They are simple, square-based patterns, so it’s not too hard to get them to correctly appear on the 3DS’s camera. I managed to get five Pokémon to appear on-screen at one time by searching for a picture on the Internet that had some of the codes displayed. Once you are satisfied with your picture, you can snap a shot and save it to the 3DS’s SD card to show the world your proud Pokémon Snap abilities.

Disappointingly, the price is a huge turn-off for me, and probably for a lot of you readers as well. Remember, the original Pokédex 3D was free, and now Nintendo has removed it from the store, so you can no longer download it. In place is this £13.49 priced app that just seems unwisely overpriced for what you are getting. You could use that money for the fantastic Pullblox or its sequel Fallblox. Maybe if it was around £5 I would be a bit more lenient on the pricing, but for £13.49 you could buy so much better stuff on the 3DS store.

I suppose it really comes down to how hardcore of a Pokémon fan are you. A lot of the information in this app can be found on the Internet, so the only unique features are the quizzes, augmented reality pictures and the awesome-looking 3D models of all the Pokémon. If you are a diehard fan then you might want to witness what potentially is the graphics of a 3DS-dedicated Pokémon sequel (if it looks like this then I am sold already, because the Pokémon look brilliant) and that might whet your appetite. For everyone else, though, you’re best saving your money or waiting for a sale, because this digital Pokédex is not worth its weight in gold.